The State of Nonprofits in Massachusetts

Exactly one week after the 2024 election, nonprofit practitioners and leaders, community stakeholders, funders, faculty and staff convened at Suffolk University’s annual Moakley Breakfast to consider the state of the sector and explore how the election’s outcome might impact their organizations and the clients they serve. Panelists included:

• Lori Smith Britton, founder and principal of Community Resource Consulting
• Michael Curry, president and CEO of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers
• Jim Klocke, CEO of the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network
• Wyona Lynch-McWhite, executive director of the Social Innovation Forum
• Kate-Marie Roycroft, CEO of the Alliance of Massachusetts YMCAs
• The panel was moderated by Leigh Handschuh, MPA ’12, senior program officer for the Boston Foundation

The event was hosted by Sawyer Business School Executive in Residence Sonia Alleyne, MPA ’01, and the welcome message was delivered by the Business School’s 2024-25 Distinguished Lecturer Geoff Beckwith, former executive director and CEO of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, who will be sharing his insights at public administration events and classes throughout the academic year.

Here are three takeaways from the discussion:

The nonprofit world is wondering about the future.

The panelists were only just starting to process what former President Trump’s reelection means and were wary about what, exactly, a second Trump administration would and wouldn’t do.

One specific concern that Curry mentioned was the Commonwealth’s Medicare waiver program. Also known as the Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Waiver program, it allows the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to waive certain Medicaid requirements. The goal of the program is to help people with disabilities and chronic health conditions live in their homes and communities instead of in long-term care facilities. “Expect our Medicaid waiver to be very different under the Trump administration,” Curry said.

As for the bigger picture, nonprofits need to work together. “All the battles we’re concerned about over the next two years, we won’t win them on our own in blue Massachusetts,” said Klocke. “The alliances and relationships we have with people in other states is going to be really important, especially people in purple states.”

The people who work at nonprofits need support, too.

The headwinds from the economy have had an effect, not just on the communities that nonprofits serve but also their employees. “People are tired,” said Roycroft. Which makes it even more important to support workers as much as constituents.

Roycroft pointed out that the cost of employee turnover at nonprofits is usually more than the cost of giving people raises. The challenge? Fundraising often leaves out the story of how important those salaries are to retaining talent. People may be 100% dedicated to an organization, but if they can’t pay off student loans or afford child care, they’re going to look for jobs in other industries.

Lynch-McWhite says organizations need to explain that people are the ones who execute an organization’s mission and that nonprofits need to support those people to fulfill that mission. “Leaders are shy about telling their story and need to remind funders, ‘I am doing mission-based work that matters no matter who is in the White House.’” And that means supporting employees.

Now more than ever, stay focused on the mission.

Despite any concerns about what the next four years may bring, the message of mission is one that the panelists encouraged attendees to embrace. “Turn fear into a positive fight,” said Britton. “Go back to work to protect what we know matters,” said Curry. Most important, said Lynch-McWhite: “Remember your why.”